The mission of the University of Chicago Cancer Research Foundation Auxiliary Board is to be investors in innovation by giving unrestricted grants to establish much-needed research programs at the Foundation, which work toward the prevention, early detection, and treatment of the scores of diseases which we collectively call cancer.
The University of Chicago Cancer Research Foundation Auxiliary Board was founded in 1951 by North Shore resident, Stephanie Howell. She and her friends raised $3000 in their first year. The Board was incorporated in 1959 as an official auxiliary of the UCCRF. Since its inception, the Auxiliary Board has raised over $1.1 million for cancer research for the Foundation. In 2006, the Board was named as a recipient of the University's coveted Harper's Society Award for its fundraising efforts.
Today's board is comprised of 24 women who actively work towards raising funds for the three doctors selected to be underwritten. Each doctor receives funds for three years. There are also approximately 20 sustaining and honorary members of the Auxiliary.
In 2008, the Board provided $150,000 to support the efforts of three doctors actively involved in cancer research: Drs. Suzanne Conzen, Alessandro Fichera and Edwin Posadas. The three doctors who will be the beneficiaries of funds for the next three years are: Drs. Ernst Lengyel, Samuel Volchenboum and Tara Henderson. Dr. Lengyel is dedicated to furthering understanding of ovarian cancer growth and metastasis. Ovarian cancer has the highest mortality rate of all gynecologic tumors and is the 5th leading cause of cancer death among U.S. women. Dr. Volchenboum is an expert in pediatric cancers. His special interest is in treating children with neuroblastoma, a tumor of the sympathetic nervous system. Dr. Henderson is also involved in pediatric oncology. Her primary focus is in screening for second cancers following childhood cancer. Childhood cancer survivors are at increased risk of developing secondary cancers, due in part, to exposure to radiotherapy.
The mission of the University of Chicago Cancer Research Foundation Auxiliary Board is to be investors in innovation by giving unrestricted grants to establish much-needed research programs at the Foundation, which work toward the prevention, early detection, and treatment of the scores of diseases which we collectively call cancer.
The UCCRFAB is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization.
